Government should go further in standing up for small businesses

Commenting on the Prime Minister’s speech to the Federation of Small Businesses, Mark Littlewood, Director General at the Institute of Economic Affairs, said:

"David Cameron’s speech today represents a move in the right direction, but there is still a danger that the government is deregulating with one hand whilst heaping further burdens on small businesses with the other.

"The government should consider permanently exempting small companies from auto-enrolment for pensions. This policy risks creating substantial administrative costs for small employers and will harm job creation, even more so when the scheme requires a 3% employer contribution from 2018. This coalition policy is directly at odds with the Prime Minister’s pro-business rhetoric.

"Lower taxes create the right incentives for business to succeed. David Cameron should look towards a more radical reduction in business rates as well as a lowering of employers’ national insurance contributions if he is truly serious about seeing small businesses flourish in the UK."

Notes to editors:

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